The Island
by kbex13
Summary: Naboo has fallen to the Trade Federation. While taking the young Queen to a secret location, Darth Maul's ship is attacked and it crashes on an uninhabited island in the center of unknown planet. What happens now? Ch. 2 up
1. Chapter 1

**Title: **The Island

**Pairing:** Maulidala. Ha! Maulidalas rock. Don't even deny it.

**Summary:** Darth Maul is transporting the young Queen of Naboo to an undisclosed location when his ship is attacked. He and his prisoner crash land on an unpopulated island in the midst of an unknown planet, leaving them isolated and alone… except for each other.

**Rating:** PG-13 now; may raise to R

**Warnings:** Well, it's a Maulidala, and a Maul romance. Generally those aren't so good, but I have done my best to make this a piece of awesome, so enjoy it anyway.

**Genre: **Drama/Romance

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing except the island.

- - - - - - - - - - -

The Sith Infiltrator cruised smoothly along through the vast blackness of space. The ship, although spacious, contained only two passengers. One of these was the ship's pilot, the mysterious and frightening Darth Maul. The other was his prisoner, the former Queen of Naboo: Padmé Amidala.

This second passenger was staring silently at the blurred stars as they made their rapid passage through space. She was alone and terrified, but she would certainly never admit that - at least, not to her captor.

After the Trade Federation had taken over Naboo, Amidala had been forced to sign the treaty. Control of the planet had been handed over to the Trade Federation and ultimately to Darth Sidious. In the meantime, Darth Maul had been assigned to transport the young queen to a secluded, undisclosed location. Only the two Sith knew exactly to where Amidala was being taken, and neither of them would say a word about it.

Of course it was rare for Lord Maul to say anything at all, Amidala thought dryly. He had spoken perhaps three sentences to her in the hours that they had spent together on this ship, and they had only been sharp, short commands at that. She awaited his arrival nervously inside a tightly locked room, but, fortunately, he appeared only three times a day to give her food. Otherwise, she was left alone.

Being alone was not entirely a bad thing, but she had no one to talk to. Often she had to resort to speaking aloud to herself to keep from running mad. Recently, she had begun to think talking to Maul might even be better than this torment.

She was afraid for herself, but more so for her people. She wanted to know what the Trade Federation would do to them, and why they had demanded control of the planet. She had no doubt that she was being taken to her death, but she certainly wished she knew where it was she was intended to die. Sometimes she wanted to die aboard the ship, just to have it over with, but really she would rather have had some place more beautiful where at least one person might care that her life had been taken.

There was no such person aboard the ship. There was only her and the Sith and the painful echo of her own voice bouncing against the slate gray walls.

- - - - - - - - - - -

Maul did not bring her dinner at the usual time, and as Padmé was immensely tired she decided to sleep. She had fallen asleep on a small, flat, uncomfortable sleep mat, covered in a thin blanket. As she had slept she had a strange dream. She had returned to the Theed Palace and was lying on the throne room floor, but everything around her was rocking crazily. She clung to the floor as droidekas and battle droids came bursting in, firing blaster bolts at her head. She heard a very loud explosion by her ear, and suddenly she was no longer in the throne room. Instead, she was in the sky, falling through the clouds, spiraling eternally downwards…

- - - - - - - - - -

When she awoke, the room around her was completely dark. She sat up, startled, and began to grope about the floor, seeking some sort of light or switch. Before she had even gotten off of her sleeping mat, the door to her cell shattered inward. Padmé gasped sharply and fell back against the wall. "Who - Lord Maul?"

Maul stepped into the room, a burning stick in his hand. "Who else?" he asked scornfully. He walked over to her and pulled her roughly to her feet. "Come," he said icily, turning away. "We must survey the damage."

Padmé stared at him curiously. "The damage? What happened?"

He turned back to her incredulously. "Surely you felt the blasts hitting the ship?"

"I was asleep."

Maul raised a nonexistent eyebrow. "You sleep soundly," he said, slightly amused. "The ship was attacked by space pirates. We have crashed on a planet. We must see how much damage has been done."

Padmé bit her lip. "We did well for crashing out of space," she said. "How did -?"

"The Force is greater than any power, including gravity," Maul said shortly. He turned his back to her again and said, "Come."

"But where _are_ we?" Padmé demanded, bewildered.

"I don't know."

"Can't you check your star charts? There must be some readouts telling you - " she tried again.

"The ship has no power."

"But the back-up generator -!"

" - Was shot by the pirates. Stop asking questions that are of no concern to you."

"No concern!" Padmé cried. "My life is at risk, and so are my people! How can you tell me that this is not my concern?"

Maul spun around rapidly and caught Padmé by the throat. "It is not your concern," he hissed directly in her face. He held her neck a little longer and then dropped her, turning on his heel and walking towards the ship's ramp. It was tightly closed, but he raised one gauntleted hand and it exploded into pieces.

"What will you do if we need to use this for our shelter?" Padmé asked fearfully. "The entryway will be left wide open."

Maul paused long enough to glare at her and then leapt down from the ship. Padmé stared a bit nervously at the ground; it was not a horribly long drop, but it was enough of one to make her hesitate. Shutting her eyes, she leapt off the edge - and was stunned when Maul caught her. He dropped her neatly on her feet and then strode purposefully past her to inspect the shots on the ship.

Padmé had a little technical knowledge, but not enough to help fix the ship. She stood passively by while Maul walked around the ship, studying it carefully. When he finally came stalking back he was frowning, his yellow eyes narrowed to near slits. He said nothing to her, merely walking past her once more. "How bad is it?" she managed in an almost-whisper.

He didn't say anything. He bent his knees and leapt straight up in the air, apparently using the Force to propel him. His fingers caught the side of his ship and he flipped on top of it. He walked the length of the ship and back before flipping off and down once more. "We can't leave," he informed her, his voice a low growl.

Padmé sighed heavily. She wasn't really surprised; the damage had appeared great to her inexperienced eyes. "I see," she said. There was a heavy silence while Maul stared angrily at his ship and Padmé watched him nervously. Finally, she asked, "Aren't we going to look around? We might be able to find help."

Maul did not look pleased at this notion. "We should not," he said. "My master does not wish me to be discovered."

"But then how -?"

"Do not concern yourself with it," he said coldly. "You will remain in the ship for the time being."

Having said his piece, he walked back to the open entryway and leapt upwards again. Suddenly, Padmé felt herself lifted from the ground. She was carried to the entryway and dropped just inside it. She collapsed limply and then made a small effort to stand. She looked up just in time to catch Maul's disgusted glare as he turned and walked away.

She waited until he was out of sight and the tap of his boots on the metal floor could no longer be heard, and then, out of pure instinct, she turned and jumped back out of the entryway.

Her fall was hard, but not hard enough to cause her too much pain. Propelled by her own fear, she leapt to her feet and began to run as quickly as she could away from the ship. It might be her only chance to escape. Surely someone on this strange world could protect her and return her to Naboo.

The ship had crashed on the edge of a highly forested area, and now Padmé was rushing through that same forest, pushing past heavy and thick foliage. The heat was immense, but she did not dare pause. With his Force powers, Maul would surely notice she was missing before long, and Padmé was positive that he could run faster than almost any other being in the galaxy.

This thought spurred her to run more rapidly. She had to get out, before it was too late. Her punishment for running would surely be swift and terrible if he were to catch her.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: Thanks to everybody who's reviewed this so far. Hopefully you will not be disappointed. Please read and review!**

**- - - - - - - - - - -**

It took Maul the space of a few seconds to realize that he was alone on board his ship. He quickly used the Force to make certain, reaching out in an attempt to touch another sentient being, but there was nothing. Furiously, he spun on his heel and ran to the entryway.

He hadn't sensed her intent to run. He assumed that it was merely survival instinct rather than a set plan that had caused her to do so; otherwise he would have been alerted to her potential disappearance long ago. But as he skidded to a halt at the ship's former ramp, he sensed her terror and her last thought: _I have to get out of here. I have to save my people._

Maul leapt from the doorway and landed on his feet. He was already running before he hit the ground. It had been foolish of him to let her escape so easily, but he had thought her too docile, too weak to even think of slipping away. She had behaved meekly and obediently the entire trip.

Of course she would have had nowhere to go in space, and then she had been locked in a single room.

Maul did not even pause as he sought with the Force to find where she had gone. He picked up her trail easily; she was the only sentient being to have been in the area. He again propelled himself forward with inhuman speed, avoiding obstacles with a near-impossible grace.

Maul widened his range, seeking to sense where Amidala actually was. He found her at last, just barely touching her consciousness. She was at most a quarter of a mile ahead of him, but he doubted that. He would catch up to her soon enough. He picked up his pace and followed her.

_Soon._

- - - - - - - - - - -

Padmé felt a light nudge in her mind. It was a strange sensation, and at first she wondered if it came from her fear or if she was running too hard. Then she realized that Maul must have found her. She gave a tiny cry of horror and attempted to run faster, but she was already going at her top speed. She was small, lithe, and quick, but Maul's physical stamina would give him the advantage.

Why hadn't she found a village yet?

Suddenly, Padmé realized that she had broken free of the trees and that she was running on grass. The grass turned to sand so suddenly that Padmé had to halt. She looked up from the ground - and gasped.

In front of her was a wide expanse of ocean. Rolling blue waves crashed against the white, sandy shores. There was no other land in sight.

Padmé began to get a sinking feeling that she was trapped.

She drew in a deep breath and began to run again.

- - - - - - - - - - -

Maul felt Amidala stop just ahead of him. He did not bother to question why, but gave a fierce grin. _Tired already, Your Highness? Pathetic girl._

He sensed her shock and dread and began to frown. _Perhaps she has run into something dangerous. If it kills her…_

Well, it would save him the work.

Suddenly she was running again, running perpendicularly to him now. He swerved quickly in order to cut her off. Why had she changed directions? To throw him off? Surely she knew that he could sense her presence and that she was merely making her capture easier for him?

He followed her anyway, cutting across the dense forest. _Damn the trees_, he though as he veered to avoid one. _Why can't there be open space?_

The moment he thought this, he came out into the open. He came to an abrupt halt just as Amidala had, staring in furious disbelief at the wide expanse of beach and ocean ahead of him. _Are we… no! We can't be!_ He quickly used the Force to confirm his guess, and found that he was correct.

_An island_, he thought. _We are trapped._

The thought caused him to give a scream of raging frustration. There was no way to repair his ship, as his scan had also indicated there were only two sentient beings on the island: Amidala and himself. If they built a boat and they were lucky, they might find their way to the mainland… but there was far too much risk involved in that. Besides, to make contact with other beings might mean the destruction of his master's carefully laid plans.

Then again…

If he could not escape, neither could Amidala. She was running frantically from him, but there was no way out. She was as trapped as if she had remained on board the ship.

Which meant that Maul could draw out his pursuit.

A slow smile began to spread across Maul's face. He loved the hunt, chasing down his prey; and causing that prey to stew in its own fear was his specialty. He would draw ever closer to her, slowly but certainly, and she would feel the noose tighten; but she would not be able to do anything about it.

Maul smirked and slipped back into the forest. Hidden in the dense foliage, he would wait.

- - - - - - - - - - -

Padmé heard Maul's blood-curdling scream of fury as she ran into the woods. She gasped and gave a small cry of her own - he was not very far behind her. _He has discovered the ocean, then,_ Padmé thought.

She was still seeking a settlement, and she was certain that Maul's howl would draw out at least a few of the beings living here. Unless…

No. She wouldn't think that. She wouldn't let herself even consider that possibility.

As she ran, she kept to the edge of the forest. She began to note that the shoreline was continuous. Perhaps they were on a peninsula, or -

An island?

_No!_ Padmé thought in silent horror. _No gods would ever be so cruel as to trap me on an island with **him**!_

A voice suddenly echoed inside her mind. _Yes, Your Highness… the gods would be so cruel._

She recognized it as Maul's voice, deep, sinuous, silky. She shuddered as he purred in her head, _You are trapped. You cannot escape. Why run? I will only find you eventually._

"You won't!" Padmé cried aloud, and she pushed herself to increase her speed.

Padmé could almost see the wicked smile on his face as his last whispered words echoed in her mind: _So be it._

- - - - - - - - - -

Maul could almost smell Amidala's terror as she sped across the island. Soon she would find herself facing the sea on the opposite side of the island, and she would know his words were true. He began to project a sense of triumph, of his drawing ever nearer to her, and planted a single though in her mind: _He is coming for you_.

The terror in her eyes when he actually captured her would only make his victory the sweeter.

- - - - - - - - - - -

Instead of following Amidala's trail, Maul returned to his ship. Eventually Amidala would find herself back in the same vicinity as the ship, and Maul would be prepared.

He began to fix the two doorways he had broken, beginning with the entryway door. It was necessary for him to have that door blocked off first - after all, who knew what might come out during the night? Maul was certain he could defeat any night creatures, but he did not want to be forced to the make the effort. He did not think Amidala would be difficult to capture, but he had already underestimated her. Now he was prepared and on his guard.

He used his lightsaber to carve out a wooden door made of logs from the area trees, using heavy cords from a storage compartment in his ship to bind them together. He set fire to several branches in order to heat some scrap metal. He used the Force to create and attach the hinges that would allow the door to swing back and forth. Finally, he fashioned a lock and key, again from scrap metal and using the Force to shape them. He tested the door, leaping against it to ensure it would hold against even the wildest beasts. Once he was satisfied, he left it be.

For Her Highness, he began to fashion a set of chains of more heated metal, watching the links form and unite until at last they were perfectly shaped and complete. It would bind around her neck and attach to his wrist or to a post - whichever he chose. Then, he began to create wooden bars for her cell doorway. He created holes in which to place the bars with his lightsaber. As he continued this project, however, he noted that the sky was growing dark, and Her Highness Amidala was growing weary from running. She was not far from the ship, but her cage was not prepared properly. He could wait to find her. She would not be nearly so resourceful as he.

Maul found a store of food capsules and used one to make a meal for himself. He ate meagerly, aware that the supply would not last both he and his passenger very long. He would have to begin hunting for food soon. He wanted to use his lightsaber, but the power pack inside it would certainly not last forever, and without a charger, his double-bladed companion was certain to die. He wanted to begin saving it for more important uses, should any arise.

He settled down to rest, still keeping his senses alert to Amidala's whereabouts and emotions. If she were to come to harm he would go to her aid - but only to make her suffer all the more when she returned.

- - - - - - - - -

Padmé noticed smoke spiraling up from somewhere near her on the island. She paused in her running, knowing that only one person could be making a fire, and he was the person she most wanted to avoid.

Running that day, she had come to realize that the island was extremely small, not worthy of even a footnote on a map. She had nearly run around it in the space of two hours. This concerned her a great deal; she had to be certain to avoid Maul at all times, but the island was so tiny that he would easily be able to cover most of the distance during a day. No doubt he would discover her before she had any idea that he was there.

Night by the water's edge was cold, with the wind blowing off the water and the spray of the ocean on her face. She did not dare start a fire herself; that would be an immediate signal to her captor as to where she was located. She hid herself firmly in the trees, struggling to warm herself under the slightly damp leaves of the underbrush. She shuddered, thinking that she should have planned better for her flight. Then again, it had really been a split-second decision to run, instinct reacting to terror.

She had to get off the island. Padmé knew this more certainly than anything else. Her people were still starving and dying, suffering much as their queen was now.

Well, she wasn't really their queen. Not anymore.

Padmé remembered signing the treaty, Maul's lightsaber held threateningly at his side, the Neimoidians surrounding her and smirking in triumph. She could feel the betrayed stares of the handmaidens and guards who had survived Darth Maul's attack on the throne room, and she had felt a shame so strong, she had almost wanted to kill herself. All she could think was, _We almost won… we almost defeated them…_

"Almost" was never enough.

She should have felt depressed, but instead, the thought and the memory strengthened her resolve. She would return to them. She would rescue them.

And not even Maul would stop her.


End file.
